Page 18 of Christmas Cove

Leo took the mini lights and chucked them back into the box. “Let’s go for a ride and get some more lights. Ones that work.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Outside, Leo hopped into the carriage and reached down for America’s hand. She was past the point of asking where they were going. And for once, she didn’t care to control every moment of her day. This man sitting beside her, this stranger, calmed her every nerve with his gentle heart and sensitive patience.

She would have ruminated on the changes she felt taking place inside her if not for the distraction of the giant red barn looming in front of her. It was as though someone had plucked a photo directly from a page in a magazine and placed it among the rolling hills of swaying yellow grasses.

“Wow,” she said and alighted from the carriage.

“Never seen a barn before, either?” Leo joked.

“Very funny. Of course, I’ve seen a barn,” America said as she walked ahead. “But this one is positively perfect.”

“Is that so? I hate to burst your bubble, but it’s just a barn.” Leo said as he worked at the padlocked door.

“Do you know why people paint their barns red?” she asked, but didn’t wait for him to give an answer. “Hundreds of years ago, farmers would mix rust into the linseed oil used to seal the wood. The rust would redden over time, and thus, the red barn was born. Of course, this was useful for preventing fungus and rot, but they found the color helped absorb more warmth in the wintertime too.”

“That’s not exactly true,” Leo said and threw open a large double door.

“Yes, it is. I’m always correct about factoids,” America shot back. “I read it in an article in the Farmer’s Almanac once.”

“You read the almanac?” Leo laughed as he walked inside the barn.

“What is so funny?” she demanded.

“You’re cute when you’re stubborn,” he said with no hint of judgment. “I was just teasing you about the barn thing. Your factoid, as you call it, is correct.”

America nudged him with her shoulder and made a sound of satisfaction in her throat that echoed inside the space.

CHAPTER12

Inside the cavernous barn,America’s pupils adjusted to the low light. Sun seeped through the cracks between planks of the outer walls and mingled with dust particles spun into a frenzy by her every step. Decades of use left the space smelling like the pages of a beloved old leather-bound book.

Leo left her side and moved off to one end of the barn. A slight curiosity told her to follow him, but a precarious stack of orchard crates piled high to her right stirred her prying eye more. She made for the crates, while somewhere behind her, Leo’s feet scuffed against the dirty wood floor. The sound of metal grinding against metal caused her to turn to where Leo was throwing open the large double doors. At the far end, light flooded into the barn.

America coughed as she waved the kicked-up dust from in front of her eyes and yelled to Leo, “Hey, come over here and look at all this stuff.” She clapped as the classic carol “Deck the Halls” played in her mind.

“You found it. Great,” Leo said as he joined her. “That’s the stuff we’re looking for.”

They wasted no time unloading the decorations. Wreaths spilled out from their confines, and string lights with faceted bulbs seemed to glow in the sunlight, though no one had plugged them into a power source. Someone had taken great care when packing the ornaments after their last usage and had matched them to their color-coded painted boxes.

“What are we going to do with all this?” America said as she sorted items.

“You asked for Christmas. These are the town decorations. So, my question to you is, what areyougoing to do now?”

“I suppose this was my grand scheme.” America stacked a red box, filled with assorted red ornaments on top of two others. Giddy beyond measure at the sight of so many wonderful Christmas decorations, a lightness filled her heart. “We’re going to need help.”

“Any minute,” Leo said.

“You already called in reinforcements? But how did you—”

“Hello in there,” a voice called from the driveway.

“Right on time,” Leo said before calling out to the man, “In here, Edwin.” Leo turned to America and spoke in a hushed tone. “Edwin is sort of a town legend. He’ll get us anything we need. You name it.”

Wasting no time, America shortened the distance between her and this enigmatic figure, so highly proclaimed as their savior of the moment, and put her hand out to greet the man. As she approached, his wrinkled eyes and thin smile told of a life well-lived, and his fully grayed coiffure was the brightest silver she had ever seen.

Edwin took her outstretched hand and pulled her in for a hug. She, feeling momentarily trapped with nowhere to go, patted the man on his back before pushing away. Leo, smirk and all, came to her rescue and put himself between them. With a quick glance and a nod, she told him of her appreciation.

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